Puritans and Quakers

Puritans and Quakers
Too bad we didn’t get the
Italian party boats!!
Puritan Beliefs
Predestination-fate was decided by god (idea
from John Calvin) The Elect.
“City on Hill…the eyes of the people are upon
us”- Winthrop on Mass. Bay Colony…the
beginning of “American Exceptionalism”
Education for all
Hard Work
Material Success a “sign” from god that you
were among “the elect”
Hard work+Education+Virtuous living = Success
and heavenly reward
Problems with the Puritans
Self-Righteousness led to double standard of
“sins” for non-believers
Hypocricy- Uneven application of laws
Intolerance
Narrow-Mindedness
Scapegoating…led to Trials
Self-hatred “could never fully believe they were
free from sin”.
No Fun-Dancing/music/sexuality/
Lasting Puritan Contributions
Public Schools
Puritan Conscience
Witch trials lead to reforms in church and a more
rational sense of god and the devil
Trials Pointed to need for church/state
separation
Trials lead to protections of the accused in
modern court system
American Exceptionalism- Winthrop’s City on the
Hill. The idea that Americans are better than
others.
What caused Witchcraft Hysteria in
1691-6?
Revocation of Colonial Charter
Belief in witches and warlocks
Famine/Crop failures before trials
Smallpox epidemic-why us?
Shifting economic power leading to class conflict
between rich and poor in village and town
Scapegoating
Conversion Hysteria
Magic Mushroom/Poison/Drugs
Acting Out”/Peer pressures
Sexual repression of teenage desires
Some Salem Images
Effects of Witch Trials
Questioning of authority of Church
Great Awakening
Increased reliance on reason and
rationality
Puritans are called Congregationalists
today
STAR TEST ALERT!
For some reason the STAR test loves ….
The Great Awakening- A religious revival/resurgence in
the colonies in the 1730-50’s. It represented a
separation of church and state and a less-rigid more
rational approach than, say, Salem and it’s witches.
People began to question the traditional church
authority.
The Second Great Awakening- 1790s-1830 Another
revival around the time of slavery and pre- civil war. First
appearance of “revival meetings” This time religious
leaders morally opposed slavery. Many, less popular but
significant sects formed: LDS (Mormons), Jehova’s
Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists.
The Quakers: A different approach
…Now Even OATIER!
Quaker Beliefs
Purity through intuition…not church dogma
Practical education
Pacifism
Avoidance of Oaths
Martyrdom
Generally poorer than Puritans
Quaker Faults
No Political Viability or power
Pacifism led to indian raids and exclusion
from colonial acceptance
No institutions = No political power
Contributions of Quakers
Belief in absolute equality
Opposition to slavery
Tradition of open-mindedness and
tolerance for different beliefs and races.
Quakers never really flourished, but
remained a benign force for Peace and
non-violence